As Philadelphia’s SEPTA system stares down severe cuts with no state rescue in sight, the Philadelphia Bar Association is shining a light on an overlooked benefit of public transit nationwide: fostering justice for all.
In a recent article for City & State Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Bar Association chancellor Katayun I. Jaffari argued that having strong public transit to the courts is crucial for all groups that come into contact with the justice system. And that includes not just the judge, the juror, the lawyer, and the prosecutor, but also defendants and plaintiffs themselves who need a way to get to court.
While courthouses are often located in central areas where public transit is plentiful and parking is expensive and limited, service cuts can make it hard for people to access the justice system even in the most connected downtowns. Jaffari notes that in Philadelphia specifically, a survey of jurors by the First Judicial District in May found that 40 percent of them used SEPTA to report for duty.
“Without SEPTA as an option, it would be more difficult for jurors to report, and some may choose not to do so at all,” writes Jaffari. “[This] would dilute the pool of jurors and directly affect the right to a fair and representative jury.”
Public transit can also be a lifeline for many who are justice-impacted over a longer term. Many states suspend driver’s licenses for those with unpaid court fines, including for failure to appear in court — and without a license, public transit may become one of the only mobility options for defendants to keep those fines from piling up.
And without strong public transit, people with suspended licenses often have no choice but to drive to get around — and risk further entanglement with the law.
“People who drive on suspended licenses can end up serving jail time or probation,” wrote Nazish Dholakia of the Vera Institute for Justice in a 2022 report. "If that happens, they will almost certainly incur additional fines, fees, and court costs — and find themselves further entrapped in a criminal legal system that exploits people who simply do not have money.”
Public transit can also help defendants fulfill court requirements designed to keep them out of jail and significant debt, like diversion programs or other, less-punitive sentences. A community service program, for example, could take place in a public park that is across the city from where someone lives. Reliable transit service to get them there and back must be part of that equation, especially for those who do not own a car.
And that’s especially important since these requirements are often prolonged, with one study finding that half of these alternatives last 10 months or more.
“[This means] that to avoid conviction or prison, people [have] to find reliable transportation for almost a year,” Jaffari notes.
While great public transit can help deliver justice for all, Jaffari says that a lack of it will undoubtedly “widen the equity gap between litigants with means and those without.”
“[It has] the potential to create a domino effect that could cause the wheels of justice to turn more slowly, with the burden disparately falling on those who are already suffering,” she adds.
